National Inventor's Month

To celebrate National Inventor's Month let's take a look at some of Roald Dahl's most inventive characters. Which one is your favourite?

May is National Inventor's Month - an annual, month-long event celebrating invention and creativity. The absolute perfect excuse for us to take another look at some of our favourite characters - except that there are so many inventive, creative types in Roald Dahl's stories it's hard to know where to start...

5. Mr and Mrs Twit

So we'll kick off with a couple of the most horrible inventors we can think of - Mr and Mrs Twit. Yes they might be mean but they're also pretty creative, with a repertoire of pranks ranging from Mrs Twit's Wormy Spaghetti to Mr Twit's nasty Walking Stick trick. And that's before we even get to their ingenious (and horrendous) method for ensnaring birds.

4. Matilda Wormwood

Matilda Wormwood is another clever prankster. The ways in which she gets her own back on her parents are pretty creative - who else but Matilda would think that a parrot in a chimney would make a good ghost story prop? She's an inventive one, alright.

3. The Big Friendly Giant

The Big Friendly Giant is one of Roald Dahl's most enduring characters and is himself a storyteller of equal inventiveness. With his wonderfully delumptious language and his nightly dream-mixing, The BFG is a creative force to be reckoned with. Just ask The Other Giants.

2. George Kranky

Now here's a boy unafraid of seeking creative solutions to his problems. Is your Grandma mean and cantankerous? George's is, but he knows just how to deal with HER. We don't recommend mixing up some Marvellous Medicine of your own, but maybe a Revolting Recipe or two might sweeten up a grizzling Grandmother...

1. Willy Wonka

But OF COURSE Mr Wonka's at number one. As Grandpa Joe says,

He's a magician with chocolate!

A character so much associated with ingenious chocolate inventions it's actually hard to remember they're not real. Hot Ice Cream For Cold Days? Square Sweets That Look Round? Hair Toffee, Everlasting Gobstoppers and Chewing Gum dinners? We want to try all of them. We'd even settle for a Whipple-Scrumptious Fudgemallow Delight.